Aqua Fresca Lemon Green Tea with Chia

Good morning everyone. I hope you had a good Monday. Mine was good, not quite as productive as it should have been, but enjoyable. Today I have a few things I need to accomplish. However I wanted to get a quick post in before I start my offline day.

The weather seems to be trying to turn warmer here which is a very good thing. This drink is something I make when the weather is warm. It is my healthy variation of lemonade. I took the broad concept of aqua fresco and added green tea for its healthful properties. Here is what I made this morning in place of hot green tea:

Aqua Fresca Lemon Green Tea with Chia
Serves 2

Ingredients:

2 cups water
4 green tea bags (I prefer Japanese green tea since it contains more EGCG)
1 lemon zested and juiced
1 tablespoon white chia seeds (whole or ground depending on what texture you want in the drink)
Stevia, used to sweeten to taste
2 cups ice cubes

Directions:

Steep your green tea for 10 minutes in order to get the maximum EGCG from the leaves. Add the lemon zest and juice and the chia seeds. Stir vigorously, or combine the ingredients in a jar with a lid and shake to distribute. Add as much stevia as you desire. Serve over ice and consume within 2 hours, before the EGCG deteriorates.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 32.68
Calories From Fat (29%) - 9.52

Total Fat - 1.21g
Saturated Fat-  0.13g
Cholesterol 0mg - 0%
Sodium - 15.44mg
Potassium - 223.09mg
Total Carbohydrates - 6.67g
Fiber - 1.91g
Sugar-  0.83g
Protein - 0.77g

Comments:

When I first started drinking this I ground the chia seeds so that all they did was add a little thickness to the beverage. However once I tried adding them whole I actually prefer that texture in the drink. It reminds me of Thai bubble tea, only with much smaller spheres.

Chia is something I bought because it was being touted as the new super food in the press. However the more research I did less enthused I was with them. Don’t get me wrong they aren’t unhealthy but they just aren’t worth the price for everyday use. The omega 3 to omega 6 ratio is good but they are not a good source of lignans like flaxseeds and I wanted the cancer protection. Since chia seeds cost 4 to 5 times as much as flaxseeds I save them for making beverages and desserts. I will continue to buy them, however they will be used more sparingly than flaxseeds at our house.  For me it is a function of cost benefit analysis. I don’t mind spending money on health but I want to get the maximum bang for what we are consuming.

Unrelated notes:

I need to run for now. Today is going to be busy for me. There are quite a few things I need to do and we have an appointment today as well. I hope you are all having a good Tuesday. Talk to you later.